You and Me, Me and You
by HazyMoonDragon
Summary: Radiant Jen Zi has defeated her greatest opponent and returned peace to the Jade Empire, but what happens now? Spoiler-heavy, Jen ZiXSky pairing.
1. The Aftermath

**AN: I will warn you once and only once, this story is EXTREMELY spoiler-heavy. Do not read this if you do not want end-game events revealed.** **Otherwise, enjoy!**

Jen Zi paused, taking advantage of what could easily be her only quiet moment for the day. Surely, Empress Sun Lian would be expecting her promptly. And surely Empress Sun Lian would not be afraid to tell her off if she were late. But moments of peace were a scarce resource for Jen Zi nowadays. Master Li—no that wasn't right—Sun Li had only been defeated a mere week ago, and since the instant that his corpse had hit the ground, Jen Zi had not had a moment to herself. Overthrowing a tyrant, as it turned out, was anything but simple to accomplish. And as if that wasn't enough, it remained complicated long after the fact. Jen Zi sighed, continuing her slow progress to the throne room. The Empress had been kind enough to give her a room in the Imperial Palace, but Jen Zi was itching to leave. Living in such opulence was a lifestyle that she was not used to, and did not particularly want to get used to. She envied Black Whirlwind, who had already managed to give everyone the slip. None of his former companions knew where exactly he had run off to. In fact, even he probably did not know the full details of where he was.

Jen Zi entered the side passage that lead to the throne room, cracking her back and shoulders in preparation. She found Empress Sun Lian in the center of the room, resting her head in her hand, her eyes closed. At the sound of Jen Zi's approach, she sprung to attention, her eyes widening for the briefest of moments before addressing her.

"Thank you for coming, Spirit Monk." She said, her voice authoritative as always. "I am pleased to inform you that the monks have made a full sweep of the Necropolis and have reported almost no spirit activity. I'm sure that puts your mind at ease."

"Indeed it does." Jen Zi said, truly thankful that the dead were now able to cross into the afterlife, "If it's not too bold, you look weary, Empress."

"I am weary. When I was a princess, I could slip away from the public eye if I was determined enough. The idea of the _Empress_ wearing the clothes of a warrior and walking amongst the common people is beyond scandalous. I have to think of my people before myself, and if I'm so insistent that my people follow the traditions that have sustained our empire for so long, what kind of leader would I be if I myself didn't follow them?"

"I can see your predicament. But I do wonder if you shouldn't make yourself a little more accessible to the peasants. You heard how complacent people in Tien's Landing were. It really doesn't matter to them who is in the palace as long as it doesn't affect their daily lives. Perhaps the empire would benefit from more involvement?"

"I wish it were that easy." Sun Lian sighed, "The implications-" She paused as a young man entered the room, bowing deeply and holding a scroll in front of him. She took the scroll from him, an exasperated look coming over her face.

"Is something the matter?" Jen Zi asked, always wary of overstepping her rank. It would help if the Empress could definitively tell her where she stood on the social hierarchy; but thus far, Sun Lian had been hesitant to define Jen Zi's place in the palace.

"It's that mad engineer again. He's managed to blow something up. It's not even midday; it might be some kind of record. And ever since we discovered that he's actually a minor deity, the people have been hesitant to reprimand him. What a mess. I'm afraid that I shall have to cut our meeting short so that I may deal with this. Feel free to do as you please, I'll send a messenger out should I require your presence."

"As you wish." Jen Zi bowed to her as she took her leave. Admittedly, she was unsure of how to proceed from here. It had been a while since she had a sparring match, perhaps she would venture over to the Black Leopard School. Or maybe Qui had work for her at the arena. If nothing else, she could talk to Doctor An about getting a little acupuncture done. Actually, she thought that sounded like a good idea. She had a flier take her back down to the city. It was difficult for her to go anywhere now without being noticed. She did not particularly care for being kowtowed to by strangers in the street, but she figured that she would grow used to it eventually. She made her way in the direction of the arena, only to be stopped when she heard her pseudonym being called.

"Raging Dragon! Ah, I'm glad that I caught your attention." The voice had come from Sweet Poison Lyn, the self-proclaimed "Master of the Toxicant Arts" that Jen Zi had met during her original days at the Imperial Arena.

"Sweet Poison Lyn, what is it?"

"The subject that I have to discuss with you is, shall we say, delicate. We would do well to relocate to somewhere away from busy streets and unwelcome ears. Meet me in the same room where you met with Kai Lan, and bring your companion with you, that rogue who usually seems to accompany you."

Jen Zi was rather skeptical of any involvement with a member of The Guild, but resolved to at least hear her out.

"I shall do as you ask, but you will need to give me a certain amount of time. My companion is elsewhere, and it will take me some amount of time to locate him." Jen Zi told her. As far as she knew, Sky was still at the Imperial Palace. And if he wasn't, well, Jen Zi had no idea where he might be.

"Then perhaps we could meet tomorrow around this time? I do not have a surplus of extra time to wait for you."

"Yes, I think that would be fine."

"I shall see you tomorrow then." Sweet Poison Lyn gave her a short, decisive wave as she walked away.

Jen Zi continued on her path, feeling that she needed the acupuncture now more than ever if she was going to have to deal with The Guild tomorrow. And why did they want her to bring Sky? While he was a rogue at heart, he had denied any significant previous involvement with The Guild. It was something that she supposed she would have to ask him about later.

Doctor An greeted her in her usual mysterious way, once again citing Jen Zi's odd energy. A comment that she was rather tired of hearing, but she held her tongue. It would have been unwise to upset a woman who was soon going to be sticking needles into some very tender spots. Jen Zi was always skeptical of the treatment before it began, and swore by it when she was finished. Really, the loss of Doctor An's vision may have been a blessing in disguise as far as she could tell. When she had finished, Jen Zi paid the doctor and made her way back into the market district. While she did feel restored, she also desired to keep a low profile for the day. It was with a slight feeling of defeat that she returned to her flier and asked to be taken back to the palace.

Sweet Poison Lyn's words had her curious about the location of her dashing rogue, so Jen Zi set out to look for him. The lax attitudes of the guards and servants told Jen Zi quite clearly that the Empress had not returned yet. While she did not know her way around the palace, Jen Zi could at least manage to find her way to the throne room, and from there back to her own room. She found Sky easily enough, as he was dozing in a patch of sunlight that had spread across his chair. Jen Zi rolled her eyes, smirking.

"Welcome home." He said, not opening his eyes.

_Damn it, how does he do that?_ Jen Zi asked herself, pursing her lips.

"What brings you back here this early?" he asked, opening his eyes and turning to look at her, "It's rare that you are so eager to stay put in the room all day."

"I was approached by Sweet Poison Lyn. She has requested both of us speak with her tomorrow. Any idea of why?"

Sky scratched the back of his head, grinning. "I would assume that it has something to do with The Guild. Seeing as we've eliminated two of their top men, it's possible that they have some sort of bone to pick with us."

"They seemed awfully happy that they were gone though." Jen Zi shrugged.

"I suppose." Sky stretched, standing up and walking over to her, "It has been rare that we have had a chance to talk, what with you avoiding the palace and me reluctant to go out where my hands might decide to get, ah, nimble with passing purses."

"Always a danger with you." Jen Zi smiled as Sky placed a hand under her chin, tilting her head upward.

"I suspect that we have some ample time before the Empress returns, if you would be interested in a little physical exercise and stress relief?" He raised one of his eyebrows suggestively, and Jen Zi could not help but laugh.

"I think that I would enjoy that. Very much."


	2. Lyn's Offer

Jen Zi awoke the next morning to Sky shifting positions. He had rolled over and was now facing away from her, breathing silently. A smirk crossing her face, she wondered if he was going to go soft now that their adventure was over.

"Good morning." He said, still facing away from her.

"How do you do that?" Jen Zi demanded, rolling him over to face her. Sky merely chuckled.

"If I told you that, then it would stop amusing me."

"Lucky me." Jen Zi sighed, smiling in spite of herself. Sky leaned forward to plant a kiss upon her forehead. "Say, how is your wound?"

"What, this old thing?" Sky threw the covers off of himself, revealing a long scar that ran horizontally across his right side, a wound that he had sustained during their battle at Dirge. "Whatever you gave me worked wonders for it. What was it, red satin grass?"

"Red silk grass." Jen Zi told him, retrieving that day's clothes. "I used it once to help a friend of mine in Two Rivers."

"Well, it certainly worked for me. It was stiff for a day or so, but even that seems to have faded."

"Glad to hear it. Say, would you care to spar a little before heading off to see The Guild? I didn't manage to get much practice in yesterday."

"I'll humor you, but I honestly don't think that I'm much of a match for you. I doubt that many people are. But, fighting you always helps me keep my ego in check, so if you'd like we can give it a few rounds." Sky told her, grinning widely. He followed suit and got dressed. Jen Zi had always found his outfit a little curious, but felt that asking about it would most likely only lead to innuendo.

The two of them walked out to the courtyard, and Jen Zi was relieved to find that the Imperial Guards had finished training for the day. Although she had grown used to the attention of others to her training, she had never much cared for it.

Jen Zi found that she always enjoyed sparring with Sky because of his unpredictable nature. Where she had been given strict guidelines on how exactly each movement should look, Sky seemed to be able to adapt to his surroundings as necessary. More than once he had forced her to stumble on a rock or tree root.

They concluded their sparring after the fourth match, which had ended with Sky on the ground.

"It looks like I'm going to have to train harder." He told Jen Zi, taking her hand as she pulled him up, "I don't want to appear unworthy of you."

"Oh come on. Nobody thinks that." Jen Zi told him.

"To your face. Do you honestly think that when the Empress gets married, that the peasantry won't gossip about how she is above her husband? No matter who the poor sap ends up being. I imagine that others look at us with the same attitude."

"I'd never really thought about it before."

"But to hell with what they say." Sky said, pulling her close and tapping her once on the nose playfully, "If we don't get going soon, I feel that we may be late for our appointment."

Jen Zi smiled, allowing Sky to take her hand as they walked away from the courtyard.

* * *

><p>"It's good to see the two of you again." Sweet Poison Lyn told them as they entered the former office of Kai Lan the Serpent.<p>

"I thought that you told me that The Guild was having no further dealings with the Arena?" Jen Zi asked.

"We aren't. I'm just borrowing this space from Qui for the time being." Lyn said coolly.

"So, what business do you have with us?" Sky asked, his expression keen.

"With both Kai Lan the Serpent and Gao the Greater dead, we find ourselves short two key—if corrupt—members of our organization." Lyn told them. Jen Zi was not sure that she approved of the direction in which the conversation appeared to be heading.

"You manipulated me into doing your grunt work. I do not appreciate being used." Jen Zi crossed her arms and shifted her weight slightly. Yes, the manipulation of others had caused her death at one point. She found that such an experience made one's tolerance for that kind of thing diminish significantly.

"But you had your own reasons for killing both Kai Lan the Serpent and Gao the Greater. It would have been done regardless of The Guild."

"I did, but that is not the point. It's the principle that matters. Had you explained your position to me, I might have even been willing to help you."

"Raging Dragon, surely you are smarter than that. Anyone in our position couldn't have simply asked to kill one of our members, think of the internal strife it would have lead to. If an outsider does the task for us, for her own reasons and with no prompt from the organization as a whole, the entire thing becomes infinitely less messy." Sweet Poison Lyn's tone was that of patience, as though she were explaining a simple concept to an overly emotional child. While Jen Zi did not approve of her treatment, she grudgingly admitted that she had a point. If she were in Lyn's position, she would have done the same.

"So, what is it exactly that you are proposing?" Sky intervened, clearly attempting to keep matters civil.

"The leadership of Gao and Kai Lan has greatly damaged the image of our group. In the old days, slave trading taking place under our name was unthinkable. I and a few of the higher ups are looking new blood, a charismatic new leader that will lead us back to the path that we once followed. I have heard of your past as a scoundrel, and of your natural charm." She looked at Sky as she talked.

"An interesting proposal." Sky said, cupping his chin in the crook between his thumb and pointer finger. Jen Zi also considered the full implications of the offer. She knew Sky well. He was a good man. A scoundrel with a lax attitude toward petty crime, but a good man at heart. If what Sweet Poison Lyn claimed was true, then perhaps some good would be able to come from Sky's involvement with The Guild.

"I will give the two of you a moment to talk in privacy." Lyn told them, her voice indifferent. She strode across the room, closing the door quietly behind her.

"So, what are your thoughts?" Sky asked.

"As much annoyance as I have with The Guild, I can't ignore the logic of her words. The Guild still has connections to some of the most successful slave-trading rings in the Empire, it could be a good opportunity to put an end to a few careers."

"I like the way you think. But are you sure that you're okay with me returning to my old life of picking pockets and finding that my enemies have had… Unfortunate accidents befall them?"

"Sky, I know you better than I know any other person. It's in your nature to be this way. I'd have been more surprised if you had remained respectable for the rest of your life." Jen Zi said. Sky chuckled softly.

"Just imagine the gossip; the hero of the Jade Empire is shacking up with the leader of the Imperial City's criminal underground. Such scandal!"

"I expect that I won't be completely uninvolved." Jen Zi told him, also snickering.

"I'm not sure that I'm fully capable of keeping secrets from you, anyway. You're too perceptive for your own good." The two of them were interrupted from their musings by Sweet Poison Lyn reentering the room.

"If the two of you are through with your flirting, have you come to a decision?"

"If you're looking for a new man up top for your organization, you can consider me interested. With conditions."

"What would those be?"

"That she has the right to as much or as little involvement in our affairs as she so desires. I believe that you owe her that much already, after all that she's already done for you."

"Very well. Consider yourself a Guild man this point on."


End file.
